The late '80s Turbo Bird was a fantastic car for its time. I was in my 20s back then and I remember it being one of the few bright spots in what was a pretty dark time for auto enthusiasts. I used to talk cars with a co-worker of mine around that time and we both appreciated the Turbo Bird. The next thing I knew he shows up with a brand new '88 Turbo Bird, dark red, stick shift, and loaded with pretty much everything it could have including a sun roof. That was a sweet car.
I like how the owner subtly modded the car. The 93 Cobra wheels, lowering it slightly and slightly extending the front lower lip/spoiler really made it look a lot better than stock but in a tasteful, OEM looking way.
How the holy hell was it car of the year though? That was the year of the fucking GNX the best American car ever made in the 80's. (and I'm a ford guy).
riothero313 - The GNX was a limited production niche vehicle built in partnership with a third party, not a regular line built car, I'm sure that had something to do with it.
My dad made me take my drivers test in a 1977 T-Bird. It had a hood 27 feet long. (or so it seemed) His thinking was that if I could parallel park it (a mandatory test then) I could park anything. So far, he was right.
When I was younger my mother drove a '79 Thunderbird, which was the last of the "big" birds... she has no depth perception. yeah, she really liked that car unless it was time to park it, or maneuver it around anything.
Maybe I'll have a 74-76 Pontiac Grand Safari Wagon eventually. I'll tell how parallel parking is if I get one. (they're 19 feet long, give or take a few inches.)
Marc E The joke was on your dad. I have a 78 TBird and although it's long it's also the easiest car I've ever had to parallel park. I suspect it's because of the long front and comparatively short rear end. I've had some amazed looks from folks when I parked the T Boat in one try with a smile on my face. Love that car!
Took my drivers test in a 1977 Mercury Cougar XR-7. Basically the same car as your 77 Tbird. The guy that gave me the driving test made me parallel park up hil in between two cars that I thought were too close to each other. I was a little nervous at first but it was super easy.
Such an underrated and forgotten about car. I've had mine for going on 25 years now and it was my daily driver for probably a solid 10 years. It sure would hug the road and has decent acceleration. I've got the red on red with a 5 speed.
The beauty of it is I first watched this video about 3 weeks ago, and this past Sunday I bought an 88 Turbo Coupe. Mild build, runs like a top, and when you drop it into 4th at 85 and hammer down it’s gone. I have never been so impressed with a car in my life
Well idk about beautiful but yes I will say that it is a good looking car and would definitely purchase if the price and miles were reasonable for sure! Would daily! Would spend money on! And would take it to the local car meet every Friday night. Would be 110% cooler than 99.999% of the Honda's that would pull up easily!! And the only reason I don't put 100% down is because you never know there could be that one dude in his 30's pull up who actually knows how to build/customize cars and does so tastefully, so tastefully in fact that it will grab the attention of everyone in the parking lot not from banging his engine of the limiter for 30 seconds at a time to make sure all eyes are on him but grabs your attention by giving it a second glance and saying damn thats nice whats done to that, now its not going to make you follow it to which ever spot he chooses (and lets be real this guy is going to park on the farthest side opposite of the revving fuck-tards in their hand me down lawn mowers that mom use to take them to school in until they were old enough to drive an then they inherited it) but you will make sure to walk down the isle he is parked in to take a closer more in depth look beneath the hood an around the whole rest of car
I owned an '88 turbo Thunderbird for several years. It was a really one of those cars ahead of its time. Easy to drive, easy to drive fairly fast. It also had tons of great features for the 80's.
I had a silver ‘87 5 spd . Excellent car with unique features for the day like being turbo charged, a big car with a 5 spd manual transmission, 4 wheel disc brakes with ABS, electronically controlled shocks with a comfort and sport setting, adjustable thigh bolsters on the front bucket seats, limited slip differential, 16” aluminum wheels, an Alcantara-like material on the seats. I think Ford created a really nice GT car for the period. It could be a comfortable cruiser on long trips in comfort mode with tons of room for luggage and camping gear or a real canyon carver in the sport setting. It had a top speed of over 140 mph and you could get over 30 mpg (imperial gallons) cruising at 80 mph. As a package, it offered something no other American cars could match. That’s why it was 1987 Car of the Year.
He's actually talking about the earlier Fox Thunderbird, which...Google it, it's horrifying. It's kind of confusing because he's talking about that one while showing this drastically redesigned (but still Fox based) Thunderbird.
Another magnificent review, the second half brought a tear to my eye.. Being a '93 Cobra owner and a true Foxbody fan (Tbird, Capri, Fairmont, not just Mustang) I think a lot of your words are understood by Fox owners and agree 100% with everything said. I am going to show this video to everyone I know that loves this platform and the Turbo Tbird. Also, the '93 Cobra wheels look awesome on this car lowered.
Friend of mine worked in a factory, making ventilator housings out of sheet metal. He noticed that many of his co-workers were missing digits. Suspecting that the job/conditions were dangerous, he asked the guy who got him in there. The guy said they lost those fingers ON PURPOSE - there was a workmans comp schedule for lost digits, by the knuckle. If a worker was cash-strapped, they'd push a finger into a machine. They'd get a few thousand, and some paid time off to recover...
@@SteevK69 I know a guy who did that...and promptly got fired from his job after they drug-tested him and found THC in his system. So he wound up with no job, no finger, and a stack of medical bills lol.
What a great lookin' car!. Damn, this thing with a new Turbo 4 pot Mustang engine in it putting out over 300hp and a sweet 6 speed manual and some beefy Brembo's and.................
Maidenrulz73 This one is nicely tweeked. That's why it's so hot. It's lowered, it's got the nice restored rims. Stainless Steel dual exhaust. Sweet paint job...This shows you what a tasteful restoration can look like.
What this car really needs is its English siblings engine, the cosworth YB. The same block with a better casting and a 16v twin cam head, 217 HP in standard form, 300+ with a upgraded actuator and a chip with a possibility for up to 700+ with real money spent on it.
For something that was on the road at the same time as most GM products and even the Crown Vic, it's a true beauty. It was a sign of the best to come, which some people would decry as a tragic end of an era.
@@jeremyjackson2323 Had the 96 LX V8 with the special package (95 Super coupe rims- not exact but a variation of them). Loved that ride. Unfortunately I DID blow that one up one day. Intake manifold leak after a hard launch. But they evidently became known for intake manifold crack issues. I could feather the gas pedal so perfectly when the AT would go between 1st and 2nd and get an extra boost out of it. But those governed engines were dogs.
My cousin had a 1988 Thunderbird Turbo Coupe, it was white and it had black leather interior, and it was fully loaded with every option. We had a lot of great times and went for many road trips in that car, i miss that car.
My grandmother had one of these cars when I was growing up. Let me tell you, when it is simply just idling, it sounds pretty awesome, like a cat purring. I should had bought hers when she sold it. It was all white with midnight blue leather seats. Such a nice looking car.
I had an 88 5 speed.. one of my favorite cars of all time... had some work done on it and made it up to about 160mph... loved this car... used to race mustang's all the time...
Here's an idea.. Maybe GM should of made the Vette Faster, and Ford made the Stang Faster. Instead they neutered or killed many great cars. -T-bird Turbo Coupe -GNX -Turbo T/A -Fiero -SVO -Corvair Those are just off the top of my head....
They could have...by using the same drivetrains in those cars. But then you wouldn't buy them. A turbo V6 corvette would have walked away from the GN but nobody would have bought it, even if it was fundamentally better than the V8 in power and handling.
+DrewLSsix My point was that GM will never let another car be faster than the Vette. So instead of making the Vette faster they hindered or killed the competition. The Vette had 160hp. An SBC can easily make 300hp. Without turbos or anything.
+Ian Thompson no...they couldn't. Engineers at the beginning of the 90s were sure that there would never be another 300+ hp pushrod V8 in any production car. You act like they were making that little power for no reason. They considered turbos and even OHC motors for regular production Vettes but determined that they wouldn't sell to traditional vette owners. And they were right.
+DrewLSsix Just do to emissions. They easily made that way back in the 50-60's. They didn't because like the rest of the world, the fuel crisis was big. Emissions were new etc... Ferraris had barely over 250hp so why did the Vette need more? The world was happy with the low power of cars. However does not mean they couldn't build the engine to make much more HP.
I've had an 87 and an 88 TC. Both were fantastic cars! I wish I had them back! They were both 5-speeds with fully functional ARC. It was too cool flipping the suspension switch from firm to auto and feeling the difference in ride firmness. I also had an adjustable wastegate, cherry bomb dual exhaust, and deleted cat on my '88 model. Damn thing was fast as hell! And got 25mpg all day long.
I was a Ford dealership tech from 87 to 2000. The turbo T-Bird was a fun car to drive. More fun than you'd think. Then came the supercharged 3.8l. Holy shit! That thing was wicked fun! I head from one of my Form instructors that if you powerbraked the auto just right, you could get 20psi boost out of the turbo.
Just saw this same Thunderbird this morning at Cars and Coffee. What a beauty, trying to convince my friend to get one instead of the usual Foxbody lol
Jamaha way to try and save your moronic comment, it's obvious they put the Mustang there intentionally. God, I'm so sick of stupid people, I'm logging off.
I always liked these Birds since they were very aerodynamic, but still looked old school especially at the rear. I remember seeing one of the sc versions like 25 years ago, and dont think I ever saw one again of this generation.
That's right all you bow tie boys out there Bill Elliott 212 miles an hour all you Chevrolet guys came running and crying sing this was too fast this is too fast it wasn't that it was too fast it's just that the junk Chevrolet couldn't keep up with it ain't that a shame Chevy's tears fell like rain pure garbage Chevrolet building the worst damn junkiest way to see the Grand Ole USA
the real secret is the SVO pistons. GM never took the time to develop and test a piston that can actually increase the compression ratio as much as Ford did. Ford did and they were successful at it. On Bill Elliot's T Bird at Talladega and it also won Daytona too. that engine was producing a 21:1 compression ratio at full song and a 11:1 at idle. GM V8s at the time could produce 16:1 compression ratio at full song and 10.5:1 at idle. And by the way those pistons that Ford had are the same ones used in their SVO street platform engines.
So on the track Bill Elliot Ford T-Bird was producing more Horsepower. Plus his brother Ernie knew how to build engines better than Yates or Rousch too at the time. And GM did have a Nascar team that build engines better than them, Childress at the time was the top dog in NASCAR on the GM side
@@josephtaverna8167 Yup! Even the Monte Carlo and Pontiac Grand Prix with the aero coup packages couldn't keep up. ASSCAR put restrictor plates on them, allowed Chevy time to modify it's front wheel drive Lumina to compete. The good ole days.
I bought my '88 new and loved it. It came with every option available. It had auto-dimming headlights. It had keyless entry. It had 4 wheel disk brakes with ABS. It had electronic climate control. It had automatic electronic suspension. I remember when the electronic shocks wore out I called the Ford dealer and asked how much for a pair of front shocks. Back around '94, the price for a pair of front shocks was $1200! I said that includes installation right? Nope, he said that was over the counter. So, I just switched the shocks to "Firm" and left them there. In '96 I bought an Impala SS and gave the Turbo-Coupe to my 16 year old son as a reward for his high grade point average. He thrashed that car until it finally died.
@@MoskusMoskiferus1611 I rather have a dog that actually bites than a dog that's just loud. Most V8's around that time had about 170bhp max so that is a lot of sound without biting. Maybe it's an American thing?
Now you know why there is restrictor plate racing...........Bill and Ernie Elliot put all others to shame and NASCAR couldn't have Ford faster than Chevy
@@onetrickpony5884 That and the fact that in the same race Bobby Allison went airborne, tore a giant gap into the protective fence and narrowly avoided plowing into the spectators at 200mph, possibly killing dozens, maybe even over a hundred people. Fact is that the 1987 Stock cars were too fast for their aerodynamics. Nascar may have ruined Superspeedway races doing so but cars uncontrollably flying at 210mph is still by far the worse option.
@@cheezburger6130 you're kidding right.. The reason why they needed to slow the cars down was because a car almost flipped into the grandstands.. Had the car not hit the wall before the fence it would've gone through the fence like a hot knife through butter and made a tragedy worse than the 1955 LeMans disaster
@@cheezburger6130 You know we probably wouldn't have racing today if they let people keep dying at the rate they were. I can't remember the driver but one of them almost went full Mustang on a bunch of people.
Had one. I was 26 years old. Loved it and everything about it. Drove it out on the ice to go ice fishing one day and it fell through. Six months old, less than 30 000 kms on it. To this day there is a very low mileage '88 Turbo Coupe at the bottom of a small lake in Ontario Canada which still snags my lures if I'm trolling. Replaced it with an '89 Probe Gt. Put over 400 000 kms on the Probe, mileage which was meant for the T Bird. Never drove on the ice again in a car. Way cheaper to lose a skidoo.
This car back in the day, made every Chevy fan sick. I remember it so well. When they use this body style for NASCAR. It was over. All you did was watched Ford win the race. And I was in a family that loved their Chevys. LOL that T-bird was scary. I love them.
dick van niggz the brakes as well, they use the teves abs that uses an electric hydro brake booster that is about ,, 2000$ to replace as the parts are discontinued from ford. I have the same setup on my 90 lincoln mkvii lsc. Which is a fox body 5.0ho with some luxuries
Back in the mid 90's,the wife and I owned an '88 in that exact color (didn't look as smooth as the on in this video,but sat about as low as that one on stock wheels and had similar exhaust setup). We really enjoyed owning/driving it while we had it. Enjoyed the video :)
My dad had one of these. First car he ever bought that didn't have a V8. He put a few grand into modifying it and would routinely kick ass on his coworker who had an '87 5.0 T-bird.
I had the exact Thunderbird as this one, I was managing a car lot and picked it out as a demo. It was very impressive for the day, I live in CO and driving it threw the mountains was awesome they cornered as well as most performance cars of today and when the turbo kicked in felt like 4 more cylinders just showed up. Those were good days...
Can confirm, I just bought an 88 turbocoupe...had a 1994 mustang gt before this and the 88 turbocoupe handles just as well as the 1994 mustang gt...but I have skinny 225 55 16 tires on the front and 215 60 16 on the rear plus stock worn out ride control suspension, the mustang had 245 45 17 all around with all new kyb struts and new bushings...this damn thunderbird turbocoupe handles just as good as my mustang did lol and it's heavier than the mustang to boot...I'm definitely buying another one and ls swapping it with a twin turbo set up...I'll keep the 2.3 turbo for another build
Yes! Now that's a good f**kin' idea right there folks. I had a 1987 with a 5.0 and the airbag suspension that would go limp like your d*ck in cold weather. Rear end sittin all on the ground and shit till you started her up and those damn bladders would pump the ass end back up. Shitty digital gauges. Power everything. Electrical problems out tha ASS. OMG were those not the days. We didn't care. We were to busy doing lines off the arm rest. LOL
I had it's follow-up, a 1989 T-Bird SC. That car was so fun to drive. I loved the supercharger whine and it just felt fast...well 80's fast anyway. It was my first car and a hand me down from my parents (got it when it was 7 years old). Spoiled me a bit when my next ride was a strip down Ranger lol. I still miss that car to this day.
They had a crap load of torque, thats why they felt so fast. I had a 91, I upgraded the rear end to 3.73 gears from the stock 3.08. Made a huge difference, car was actually fast haha
OH man I'm so happy you did one of these. I had two Turbo Coupes in high school - in the year y2gay - and I loved them so much. From a modern perspective, yeah it's a very, very confused/confusing car. When it was new, though, the Turbo Coupe was like the ultimate fusion of American and European forms and sensibilities. Ford was really knocking shit out of the park for a few years there under Donald Petersen, right after their near death experience... but by the dawn of the '90s they were ready to get back to selling stupid, fat cars to stupid, fat Americans. That's why the Turbo Coupe doesn't make sense to us in 2016; Ford never really built on what they started with the cars like this, the Fox Mustang, the original Taurus, etc. Instead, they went all in on easy SUV/pickemup truck money. They never adapted to the shrinking "personal luxury coupe" market, cheaped and dulled out the Taurus while its Japanese competition just got better and better, and allowed the Mustang to get progressively more cartoony and retrocentric over the years. When the T-Bird "came back" in 2001, it was the ultimate in sappy, sentimental retromobiles. Promising beacons of Euro hope like the OG Contour and Focus arrived full of compromise and lacking the (relatively) high quality that defined mid '80s Fords. The current "One Ford" model recalls certain elements of the Petersen approach, but there isn't any firm link between the two eras.
those last words said it all , find a nice one and buy it , an era worth remembering, for one thing you can mod the heck out of it, town tax man probably will undervalue it too.
I had a 1988 Thunderturd as well. The V6 one. It was my first car, and I had bought from my aunt. As a teen, I wanted to RICE it out, haha! I put new suspension on it, redid all the bushings to PST polyurethane bushings, and had a family friend weld in a custom 2 inch exhaust with 3 chamber flowmaster mufflers with high flow cats, and it still passed smog, in NJ! Also installed MTX Roadthunder 4 chl amp with Apline HU and Polk Audio Speakers. Had tons of fun in it. When I moved out of the house, my younger brother took over ownership.
I had a 1985 TB/TC. Smoothest shifting 5 speed I ever experienced, handled beautifully for its time, accursed turbo lag that would lay dormant and then kick you in the head. Or the kidneys. You never knew when or where it was coming from! Sadly, it lost its life to a big maple tree at the apex of an icy corner…😢 Loved this car, and all the Fox-bodied designs. Thank you!
Everytime I see one of these, it looks like it's spent it's whole life getting it's teeth kicked in by an IROC Z in trailer park races. This thing looks pretty damn good with those Cobra wheels.
I owned a 1988 Turbo Coupe and I loved it. Most of the video in this video is of a 1987 model. This car was far ahead of it's time. I heavily modified mine with a cam, a big T3 turbo and 18 pounds of boost, but at the end of the day, it was a heavy car with a 4 cylinder engine working very hard to move it. I don't think it gets the love it deserves. I wish I still had it. Thanks for the video.
That thing looks so dope, fuck them Mustangs gimme this, in, this color these wheels and all the other upgrades and the 5speed. Maybe make it even more of a Sleeper by giving it more power but not not really I want it exactly like this. Damn so beautiful.
I had a 94 supercoupe 3.8L v6 t-bird. It was My first car. Bought it for $2200 and drove it for 10 years. Best car I ever owned, unless it snowed. Absolutely quick and fast for its size. I miss that car.
Luv this T Bird just the way it is looks so Amazing with the 93 Cobra rims witch are my favorite rims of all time I'm a Mustang guy had about 9 different Mustangs but this Car is sweet I've been trying to find one for a few years now but no luck ? I did spot one same color but it was totalled and in a salvage yard mostly all the good parts were gone already🐺
I had a brand new one in 1988! Black with black and grey leather interior, 5 speed, premium sound, keyless entry, it had everything but the moon roof! Hands down my favorite car that ever had!
I knew I recognized some of these roads shown throughout the review. Then I spotted the sign for Crystal Cave at the end -- Berks County locale confirmed!
I had a summer job as a lot boy for my local Ford dealer in Philly in 88. Someone stole our T-bird turbo and it was recovered in Baltimore. I was sent to get it and spent the whole day weaving up and down i95. Loved it!
When they first came out, I told my wife someday I would own one of these. Well guess what, I now own 3 of these cars. I love them.
Y 3 tho
@@ogschlongerson7580 I want 3 as well: I want a supercharged V8 version, an electric version and a completely stock version
@@ogschlongerson7580 because he hasn’t got a 4th one yet
Yo Santa!
@@ogschlongerson7580 because 1 modified, 1 to drive, and 1 to race or shit one as a beater to beat the fuck out of
"Like a girl who would be a lot hotter if she cared about you less..."
Classic!
Welp that girl must be a super model
Damnit every time I watch these videos I end up on Craigslist trying to find one lol
Go find one! ‘Merica!
Lol,,me too, about to go check now
My boy got a mint stock one for sale now!
eBay
LOOOLLL OMG thas funny
Probably one of the nicest turbo couple ive ever seen. The right color with a nice lowered stance and those wheels look perfect on this car.
The late '80s Turbo Bird was a fantastic car for its time. I was in my 20s back then and I remember it being one of the few bright spots in what was a pretty dark time for auto enthusiasts. I used to talk cars with a co-worker of mine around that time and we both appreciated the Turbo Bird. The next thing I knew he shows up with a brand new '88 Turbo Bird, dark red, stick shift, and loaded with pretty much everything it could have including a sun roof. That was a sweet car.
That car looks amazing with those Cobra wheels.
+Jesus Saves I'm a sucker for 80's/90's performance Fords. I had a 93 and 95 Taurus SHO years ago and they were so cool. They had neat wheels too. :3
OnTheRocks "neat"?
to me they look similar to the ones that came Factory stock on the 90s Thunderbirds
P&P Racing they’re 2inches smaller I believe. I have an 88 Tbird as well and I’m trying to source the same rims haha.
The way it rides from the front it looks like a tricked out Stang kind of.
I like how the owner subtly modded the car. The 93 Cobra wheels, lowering it slightly and slightly extending the front lower lip/spoiler really made it look a lot better than stock but in a tasteful, OEM looking way.
+johnkilo yea, it's pretty fresh for a old ford
+johnkilo Exactly my thought. He did it right. He didnt compromise the integrity of the car, he just unleashed the potential it had.
How the holy hell was it car of the year though? That was the year of the fucking GNX the best American car ever made in the 80's. (and I'm a ford guy).
riothero313 - The GNX was a limited production niche vehicle built in partnership with a third party, not a regular line built car, I'm sure that had something to do with it.
@@riothero313 Car of the Year concerns only new or heavily revised models. The GNX was essentially a 3rd party modified Regal.
My dad made me take my drivers test in a 1977 T-Bird. It had a hood 27 feet long. (or so it seemed) His thinking was that if I could parallel park it (a mandatory test then) I could park anything. So far, he was right.
When I was younger my mother drove a '79 Thunderbird, which was the last of the "big" birds...
she has no depth perception.
yeah, she really liked that car unless it was time to park it, or maneuver it around anything.
I definitely agree that it's better to learn to drive and parallel park on a huge car than the other way round.
Maybe I'll have a 74-76 Pontiac Grand Safari Wagon eventually. I'll tell how parallel parking is if I get one. (they're 19 feet long, give or take a few inches.)
Marc E
The joke was on your dad. I have a 78 TBird and although it's long it's also the easiest car I've ever had to parallel park. I suspect it's because of the long front and comparatively short rear end. I've had some amazed looks from folks when I parked the T Boat in one try with a smile on my face. Love that car!
Took my drivers test in a 1977 Mercury Cougar XR-7. Basically the same car as your 77 Tbird. The guy that gave me the driving test made me parallel park up hil in between two cars that I thought were too close to each other. I was a little nervous at first but it was super easy.
Such an underrated and forgotten about car. I've had mine for going on 25 years now and it was my daily driver for probably a solid 10 years. It sure would hug the road and has decent acceleration. I've got the red on red with a 5 speed.
The beauty of it is I first watched this video about 3 weeks ago, and this past Sunday I bought an 88 Turbo Coupe. Mild build, runs like a top, and when you drop it into 4th at 85 and hammer down it’s gone. I have never been so impressed with a car in my life
Wow, that car setup the way it is with those rims is beautiful. 10/10 would daily.
Zachary Adams it looks like it came with it
i would shit on you just because u writing shit like this fuck u i hope ur hair get bleached goodbye
art hyseni
Wtf
art hyseni you need help
Well idk about beautiful but yes I will say that it is a good looking car and would definitely purchase if the price and miles were reasonable for sure! Would daily! Would spend money on! And would take it to the local car meet every Friday night. Would be 110% cooler than 99.999% of the Honda's that would pull up easily!! And the only reason I don't put 100% down is because you never know there could be that one dude in his 30's pull up who actually knows how to build/customize cars and does so tastefully, so tastefully in fact that it will grab the attention of everyone in the parking lot not from banging his engine of the limiter for 30 seconds at a time to make sure all eyes are on him but grabs your attention by giving it a second glance and saying damn thats nice whats done to that, now its not going to make you follow it to which ever spot he chooses (and lets be real this guy is going to park on the farthest side opposite of the revving fuck-tards in their hand me down lawn mowers that mom use to take them to school in until they were old enough to drive an then they inherited it) but you will make sure to walk down the isle he is parked in to take a closer more in depth look beneath the hood an around the whole rest of car
One word: Thundercougarfalconbird
Chad Baptiste
ha!
YES
My Favorite Futurama Reference!
I got a 93 cougar got on this vid because it looked like it
.....Tempo
I owned an '88 turbo Thunderbird for several years. It was a really one of those cars ahead of its time. Easy to drive, easy to drive fairly fast. It also had tons of great features for the 80's.
Lot of 80s cars had features dumbass
You have a problem buddy and the problem is you.
I had a silver ‘87 5 spd . Excellent car with unique features for the day like being turbo charged, a big car with a 5 spd manual transmission, 4 wheel disc brakes with ABS, electronically controlled shocks with a comfort and sport setting, adjustable thigh bolsters on the front bucket seats, limited slip differential, 16” aluminum wheels, an Alcantara-like material on the seats. I think Ford created a really nice GT car for the period. It could be a comfortable cruiser on long trips in comfort mode with tons of room for luggage and camping gear or a real canyon carver in the sport setting. It had a top speed of over 140 mph and you could get over 30 mpg (imperial gallons) cruising at 80 mph. As a package, it offered something no other American cars could match. That’s why it was 1987 Car of the Year.
My dad had a 1986. I drove it across California and Nevada deserts as a kid and that thing was fast as hell. Great video.
I remember racing one from a stop light when I had my Lincoln LSC with 5.0 and the Thunderbird Turbo Coupe whipped my ass.
pjdelucia
I owned an '85 tc '87 tc and '91 sc The '85 auto would kick all their asses. She'd pull 17 lbs and put you in the seat.
Cant lie the owner looks badass cruising in that badass car
This is just the best looking Turbo Coupe I've ever seen.
man this T Bird looks bad ass. good work making this car look this cool.
remember, the Cougar XR7 was Mercury''s sexy cousin to this car. even rarer.
The 1987 Mercury cougar was my first car ever. I had the 5.0 i wish i fixed it and never let it die smh.
I think the Cougar looked better too.
Yes I preferred the Coug
I currently drive a 1997 Mercury Cougar XR7 all original with 80k miles. I bout it with 60k miles and absolutely love this car
Cougars were sexy as hell in general.
I love driving this car, especially when you feel the turbo kick in, thank you dad for passing this down to me. Love you
That car is fucking gorgeous, what are you talking about?
thunderbird 9th gen was a beast
He's actually talking about the earlier Fox Thunderbird, which...Google it, it's horrifying. It's kind of confusing because he's talking about that one while showing this drastically redesigned (but still Fox based) Thunderbird.
it looks like any ford from that era,get your fucking eyes cleaned
@@viniciusbraga9881 - GNX's100 more HP made it look better...
@@viniciusbraga9881 - GNX had better rear performance suspension... and a frame...
Another magnificent review, the second half brought a tear to my eye.. Being a '93 Cobra owner and a true Foxbody fan (Tbird, Capri, Fairmont, not just Mustang) I think a lot of your words are understood by Fox owners and agree 100% with everything said. I am going to show this video to everyone I know that loves this platform and the Turbo Tbird. Also, the '93 Cobra wheels look awesome on this car lowered.
Found one of these in mint condition for $4000, original owner, less than 100k on it.
Time to go sell half a kidney.
Friend of mine worked in a factory, making ventilator housings out of sheet metal. He noticed that many of his co-workers were missing digits. Suspecting that the job/conditions were dangerous, he asked the guy who got him in there. The guy said they lost those fingers ON PURPOSE - there was a workmans comp schedule for lost digits, by the knuckle. If a worker was cash-strapped, they'd push a finger into a machine. They'd get a few thousand, and some paid time off to recover...
You should get a better rate for your kidney bud - just sayin
@@SteevK69 I know a guy who did that...and promptly got fired from his job after they drug-tested him and found THC in his system. So he wound up with no job, no finger, and a stack of medical bills lol.
@@SteevK69
That’s a special kind of stupid
Hey, you bought it?
This was my first car when I graduated high school in 2000, then bought another one in 2003. They were fun cars!! Really neat too!!
I daily drive an 88 Turbo Coupe 5 speed. I friggen love it!
What a great lookin' car!. Damn, this thing with a new Turbo 4 pot Mustang engine in it putting out over 300hp and a sweet 6 speed manual and some beefy Brembo's and.................
It is a great lookin car isn't it..... Didn't really take much notice of em in '88 but damn! That's a good lookin car
Maidenrulz73 This one is nicely tweeked. That's why it's so hot. It's lowered, it's got the nice restored rims. Stainless Steel dual exhaust. Sweet paint job...This shows you what a tasteful restoration can look like.
Philip Rosenthale the ty in bh h
Nav Malhi Can you please convert that into english please Nav.
What this car really needs is its English siblings engine, the cosworth YB. The same block with a better casting and a 16v twin cam head, 217 HP in standard form, 300+ with a upgraded actuator and a chip with a possibility for up to 700+ with real money spent on it.
I will always love the look of this car. The owner did a great job with the enhancements.
that car looks classy as fuck, tastefully modified too
I'm going to say it...
This is the best looking car Ford ever built.
For something that was on the road at the same time as most GM products and even the Crown Vic, it's a true beauty. It was a sign of the best to come, which some people would decry as a tragic end of an era.
Ever? Mby not but it is a unique piece of beauty
Ford Pinto?
Had one.
Loved it!
Some of my kids were conceived in back seat !
Those was the best of times !!!!!
I bought one in 1999 for $1200. I miss this car more than any other I've owned.
Robert Kolb I loved my 95 v8
You couldnt blow it up if you tried
I would legitimately buy one right now in 2018. I hope to god they're still that cheap, adjusted for inflation
@@ChromeTecNina you'll spend 5-7k for one in pristine condition. I daily drive an 88.
@@westleywalsh8188 fairly reasonable, thanks
@@jeremyjackson2323 Had the 96 LX V8 with the special package (95 Super coupe rims- not exact but a variation of them). Loved that ride. Unfortunately I DID blow that one up one day. Intake manifold leak after a hard launch. But they evidently became known for intake manifold crack issues.
I could feather the gas pedal so perfectly when the AT would go between 1st and 2nd and get an extra boost out of it. But those governed engines were dogs.
*RETURN MY TREASURES TO ME AND I MYSELF WILL CARRY THROUGH THE GATES OF VALHALLA.*
Could someone explain this reference to me please???
+Nutshell2K Mad Max: Fury Road!
Nick Gregory *WITNESS*
not sure, a thunderturd was never a treasure.
Nutshell2K mad max
My cousin had a 1988 Thunderbird Turbo Coupe, it was white and it had black leather interior, and it was fully loaded with every option. We had a lot of great times and went for many road trips in that car, i miss that car.
My grandmother had one of these cars when I was growing up. Let me tell you, when it is simply just idling, it sounds pretty awesome, like a cat purring. I should had bought hers when she sold it. It was all white with midnight blue leather seats. Such a nice looking car.
I had an 88 5 speed.. one of my favorite cars of all time... had some work done on it and made it up to about 160mph... loved this car... used to race mustang's all the time...
Here's an idea.. Maybe GM should of made the Vette Faster, and Ford made the Stang Faster. Instead they neutered or killed many great cars.
-T-bird Turbo Coupe
-GNX
-Turbo T/A
-Fiero
-SVO
-Corvair
Those are just off the top of my head....
They could have...by using the same drivetrains in those cars. But then you wouldn't buy them. A turbo V6 corvette would have walked away from the GN but nobody would have bought it, even if it was fundamentally better than the V8 in power and handling.
+DrewLSsix My point was that GM will never let another car be faster than the Vette. So instead of making the Vette faster they hindered or killed the competition. The Vette had 160hp. An SBC can easily make 300hp. Without turbos or anything.
+Ian Thompson no...they couldn't. Engineers at the beginning of the 90s were sure that there would never be another 300+ hp pushrod V8 in any production car. You act like they were making that little power for no reason.
They considered turbos and even OHC motors for regular production Vettes but determined that they wouldn't sell to traditional vette owners. And they were right.
+DrewLSsix Just do to emissions. They easily made that way back in the 50-60's. They didn't because like the rest of the world, the fuel crisis was big. Emissions were new etc... Ferraris had barely over 250hp so why did the Vette need more? The world was happy with the low power of cars. However does not mean they couldn't build the engine to make much more HP.
Ian Thompson
I love it. It has amazing proportions. And those wheels!!
I've had an 87 and an 88 TC. Both were fantastic cars! I wish I had them back! They were both 5-speeds with fully functional ARC. It was too cool flipping the suspension switch from firm to auto and feeling the difference in ride firmness. I also had an adjustable wastegate, cherry bomb dual exhaust, and deleted cat on my '88 model. Damn thing was fast as hell! And got 25mpg all day long.
I was a Ford dealership tech from 87 to 2000. The turbo T-Bird was a fun car to drive. More fun than you'd think. Then came the supercharged 3.8l. Holy shit! That thing was wicked fun! I head from one of my Form instructors that if you powerbraked the auto just right, you could get 20psi boost out of the turbo.
Still love this car after all these years. Born in 66 so this car arrived during my automotive sweet spot. Sigh...
This car should be in forza
Colin Sullivan all thunderbirds should be in forza, even the weirdly adorable 2002 model.
I owned and loved my 98 T-bird and SCREAMED at Turn 10 to put in a more modern version of the T-bird other than the 50's one that is in the game.
A lot of American sleepers are just non existent in Forza
Forza hates 90s domestic it seems. That and the 80s are the most neglected era. Granted it was the malaise era
Nah my Saturn sc2 sport with a top speed of 130mph should be in for a horizon 4
Just saw this same Thunderbird this morning at Cars and Coffee. What a beauty, trying to convince my friend to get one instead of the usual Foxbody lol
anyone else notice the mustang driving by at 7:00 when he's talking about it? regular car reviews... you did it again!
+Jack only everyone
+El Guapo Haha sorry to burst your bubble but I was being sarcastic
Jamaha way to try and save your moronic comment, it's obvious they put the Mustang there intentionally. God, I'm so sick of stupid people, I'm logging off.
Thanks for the comment :)
I owned one of these in 1987. Received it in Feb 1987. I had it for 9 years. Never should of sold it. Great driving car!!
I loved this car in 1983. My friends dad got one and he let my friend drive it all the time. I was so completely jealous.
the wheels look factory the way he did it, that's cool
+Ramiro DY (SD18) because they are.
+Ramiro DY (SD18) It's like he said that in the video.
I always liked these Birds since they were very aerodynamic, but still looked old school especially at the rear. I remember seeing one of the sc versions like 25 years ago, and dont think I ever saw one again of this generation.
That's right all you bow tie boys out there Bill Elliott 212 miles an hour all you Chevrolet guys came running and crying sing this was too fast this is too fast it wasn't that it was too fast it's just that the junk Chevrolet couldn't keep up with it ain't that a shame Chevy's tears fell like rain pure garbage Chevrolet building the worst damn junkiest way to see the Grand Ole USA
the real secret is the SVO pistons. GM never took the time to develop and test a piston that can actually increase the compression ratio as much as Ford did. Ford did and they were successful at it. On Bill Elliot's T Bird at Talladega and it also won Daytona too. that engine was producing a 21:1 compression ratio at full song and a 11:1 at idle. GM V8s at the time could produce 16:1 compression ratio at full song and 10.5:1 at idle. And by the way those pistons that Ford had are the same ones used in their SVO street platform engines.
So on the track Bill Elliot Ford T-Bird was producing more Horsepower. Plus his brother Ernie knew how to build engines better than Yates or Rousch too at the time. And GM did have a Nascar team that build engines better than them, Childress at the time was the top dog in NASCAR on the GM side
@@josephtaverna8167 Yup! Even the Monte Carlo and Pontiac Grand Prix with the aero coup packages couldn't keep up. ASSCAR put restrictor plates on them, allowed Chevy time to modify it's front wheel drive Lumina to compete. The good ole days.
Looks like the 2009 Monte Carlo.
I'm a GM guy and I love this car.
+Robert Frias Ditto.
Same. I'd rock one too.
the side profile and rear both look like they were referenced for the design of the Crown Victorian. Very similar curves
Christian Anderson Crown Victoria*.
Robert Frias It gives me a bit of a Ford Falcon vibe. mostly in the front end
I bought my '88 new and loved it. It came with every option available. It had auto-dimming headlights. It had keyless entry. It had 4 wheel disk brakes with ABS. It had electronic climate control. It had automatic electronic suspension. I remember when the electronic shocks wore out I called the Ford dealer and asked how much for a pair of front shocks. Back around '94, the price for a pair of front shocks was $1200! I said that includes installation right? Nope, he said that was over the counter. So, I just switched the shocks to "Firm" and left them there. In '96 I bought an Impala SS and gave the Turbo-Coupe to my 16 year old son as a reward for his high grade point average. He thrashed that car until it finally died.
Cool looking car! Nice to know guys like yourself are keeping these cars alive! Drive with pride!
We called it the "Thunder Chicken"
Had a 84 TB 5.0 H.O. Carb’d to multi-port w/ injectors cam BBK fender intake to plenum. Then came the imports,.
why? 190bhp is not bad at all for that time
I4 aren't Sounds like a Thunder at all, So Better call It Tamebird
@@MoskusMoskiferus1611 I rather have a dog that actually bites than a dog that's just loud. Most V8's around that time had about 170bhp max so that is a lot of sound without biting. Maybe it's an American thing?
1987 Thunderbird is the fastest car ever in NASCAR, and will never be beaten.
212.809 MPH
Now you know why there is restrictor plate racing...........Bill and Ernie Elliot put all others to shame and NASCAR couldn't have Ford faster than Chevy
Cheezburger 61
It’s that way today. As soon as the Fords start to dominate, NASCAR changes the rules to benefit the Chevy’s and Toyota’s.
@@onetrickpony5884 That and the fact that in the same race Bobby Allison went airborne, tore a giant gap into the protective fence and narrowly avoided plowing into the spectators at 200mph, possibly killing dozens, maybe even over a hundred people. Fact is that the 1987 Stock cars were too fast for their aerodynamics. Nascar may have ruined Superspeedway races doing so but cars uncontrollably flying at 210mph is still by far the worse option.
@@cheezburger6130 you're kidding right.. The reason why they needed to slow the cars down was because a car almost flipped into the grandstands.. Had the car not hit the wall before the fence it would've gone through the fence like a hot knife through butter and made a tragedy worse than the 1955 LeMans disaster
@@cheezburger6130 You know we probably wouldn't have racing today if they let people keep dying at the rate they were. I can't remember the driver but one of them almost went full Mustang on a bunch of people.
Lost my virginity in an 87 Turbo Coupe
+Fahrenheit38 Noice!
I lost my virginity on the AC unit on the side of my old house
+yes sir Noice!
+Fahrenheit38 good job. i'd fuck that car, too
+Pan tera
Exhaust pipe, that fuel tank pipe or the cylinder?
Had one. I was 26 years old. Loved it and everything about it. Drove it out on the ice to go ice fishing one day and it fell through. Six months old, less than 30 000 kms on it. To this day there is a very low mileage '88 Turbo Coupe at the bottom of a small lake in Ontario Canada which still snags my lures if I'm trolling. Replaced it with an '89 Probe Gt. Put over 400 000 kms on the Probe, mileage which was meant for the T Bird. Never drove on the ice again in a car. Way cheaper to lose a skidoo.
This car back in the day, made every Chevy fan sick. I remember it so well. When they use this body style for NASCAR. It was over. All you did was watched Ford win the race. And I was in a family that loved their Chevys. LOL that T-bird was scary. I love them.
It has a ride firmness switch! That is super advanced.
Shadow Hamster sounds like one more thing to fuck up eventually to me lol
dick van niggz the brakes as well, they use the teves abs that uses an electric hydro brake booster that is about ,, 2000$ to replace as the parts are discontinued from ford. I have the same setup on my 90 lincoln mkvii lsc. Which is a fox body 5.0ho with some luxuries
This is actually one of my most favorite cars ever...
I always enjoyed the lines on these. Gotta love the switch for "Premium fuel" or not. Bet she's fun to drive.
Back in the mid 90's,the wife and I owned an '88 in that exact color (didn't look as smooth as the on in this video,but sat about as low as that one on stock wheels and had similar exhaust setup). We really enjoyed owning/driving it while we had it. Enjoyed the video :)
Loved this car that a friend of a friend owned and we would all tear around in. So nice.
The guy driving the car in some of these shots looks like bubbles from trailer park boys.
Your analogy of comparing this car to an older lady at a slot machine on a barstool is priceless. Very funny!
My dad had one of these. First car he ever bought that didn't have a V8. He put a few grand into modifying it and would routinely kick ass on his coworker who had an '87 5.0 T-bird.
+LegacyMuse sweet
I know the pain. My friend had one of these and I had a cougar with a 5.0.
I gotta say you’ve injected more personality than I’ve ever heard on a car channel. Subscribed
I had the exact Thunderbird as this one, I was managing a car lot and picked it out as a demo. It was very impressive for the day, I live in CO and driving it threw the mountains was awesome they cornered as well as most performance cars of today and when the turbo kicked in felt like 4 more cylinders just showed up. Those were good days...
Can confirm, I just bought an 88 turbocoupe...had a 1994 mustang gt before this and the 88 turbocoupe handles just as well as the 1994 mustang gt...but I have skinny 225 55 16 tires on the front and 215 60 16 on the rear plus stock worn out ride control suspension, the mustang had 245 45 17 all around with all new kyb struts and new bushings...this damn thunderbird turbocoupe handles just as good as my mustang did lol and it's heavier than the mustang to boot...I'm definitely buying another one and ls swapping it with a twin turbo set up...I'll keep the 2.3 turbo for another build
The auto was a a4ld not the aod. Thanks for this review. I've has 11 86-87 thunderbirds and cougars. Love em to death.
Slap a 2000 SUX sticker on it and it would of sold better hahahaha!
“Ill buy that for a dollar!”
rdizzo1313 ok robocop lmao
LMAO!
Come on Clarence NO!!!!
I Like It !
Should review a Lincoln Mark VII...
Yes! Now that's a good f**kin' idea right there folks. I had a 1987 with a 5.0 and the airbag suspension that would go limp like your d*ck in cold weather. Rear end sittin all on the ground and shit till you started her up and those damn bladders would pump the ass end back up. Shitty digital gauges. Power everything. Electrical problems out tha ASS. OMG were those not the days. We didn't care. We were to busy doing lines off the arm rest. LOL
@@metaljew4456 lies
My uncle had an ‘87 Cougar. Was such a great car. He sold it with over 500,000 miles on it.
I had it's follow-up, a 1989 T-Bird SC. That car was so fun to drive. I loved the supercharger whine and it just felt fast...well 80's fast anyway. It was my first car and a hand me down from my parents (got it when it was 7 years old). Spoiled me a bit when my next ride was a strip down Ranger lol.
I still miss that car to this day.
They had a crap load of torque, thats why they felt so fast. I had a 91, I upgraded the rear end to 3.73 gears from the stock 3.08. Made a huge difference, car was actually fast haha
OH man I'm so happy you did one of these. I had two Turbo Coupes in high school - in the year y2gay - and I loved them so much. From a modern perspective, yeah it's a very, very confused/confusing car. When it was new, though, the Turbo Coupe was like the ultimate fusion of American and European forms and sensibilities. Ford was really knocking shit out of the park for a few years there under Donald Petersen, right after their near death experience... but by the dawn of the '90s they were ready to get back to selling stupid, fat cars to stupid, fat Americans. That's why the Turbo Coupe doesn't make sense to us in 2016; Ford never really built on what they started with the cars like this, the Fox Mustang, the original Taurus, etc. Instead, they went all in on easy SUV/pickemup truck money. They never adapted to the shrinking "personal luxury coupe" market, cheaped and dulled out the Taurus while its Japanese competition just got better and better, and allowed the Mustang to get progressively more cartoony and retrocentric over the years. When the T-Bird "came back" in 2001, it was the ultimate in sappy, sentimental retromobiles. Promising beacons of Euro hope like the OG Contour and Focus arrived full of compromise and lacking the (relatively) high quality that defined mid '80s Fords. The current "One Ford" model recalls certain elements of the Petersen approach, but there isn't any firm link between the two eras.
those last words said it all , find a nice one and buy it , an era worth remembering, for one thing you can mod the heck out of it, town tax man probably will undervalue it too.
Easily the best looking car of the 80's era, IMO.
I had a 1988 Thunderturd as well. The V6 one. It was my first car, and I had bought from my aunt. As a teen, I wanted to RICE it out, haha! I put new suspension on it, redid all the bushings to PST polyurethane bushings, and had a family friend weld in a custom 2 inch exhaust with 3 chamber flowmaster mufflers with high flow cats, and it still passed smog, in NJ! Also installed MTX Roadthunder 4 chl amp with Apline HU and Polk Audio Speakers. Had tons of fun in it. When I moved out of the house, my younger brother took over ownership.
I had a 1985 TB/TC. Smoothest shifting 5 speed I ever experienced, handled beautifully for its time, accursed turbo lag that would lay dormant and then kick you in the head. Or the kidneys. You never knew when or where it was coming from! Sadly, it lost its life to a big maple tree at the apex of an icy corner…😢 Loved this car, and all the Fox-bodied designs. Thank you!
Everytime I see one of these, it looks like it's spent it's whole life getting it's teeth kicked in by an IROC Z in trailer park races. This thing looks pretty damn good with those Cobra wheels.
I LOVE YOU! this is my favorite car and you reviewed it!!!
I love that red pinstripe.
Preferring monochrome, I usually don't like stripes, but this one works! They put the same red reflective stripe on Mustangs, too...
Damn it looks good. With these mods it could be easily passed as 90s car and I love it!
I owned a 1988 Turbo Coupe and I loved it. Most of the video in this video is of a 1987 model. This car was far ahead of it's time. I heavily modified mine with a cam, a big T3 turbo and 18 pounds of boost, but at the end of the day, it was a heavy car with a 4 cylinder engine working very hard to move it. I don't think it gets the love it deserves. I wish I still had it. Thanks for the video.
"Like just because I check reddit on my phone, I don't appreciate being alive"
one good looking turbo coupe
That thing looks so dope, fuck them Mustangs gimme this, in, this color these wheels and all the other upgrades and the 5speed. Maybe make it even more of a Sleeper by giving it more power but not not really I want it exactly like this. Damn so beautiful.
You could swap in the current Mustang's turbo 4 - makes 310HP/350Tq. Or, LS-swap...
@@SteevK69 LS-swap that in your ass, no Opel engine should be touching that car. Nor Fiat (dodge) stuff
I had a 94 supercoupe 3.8L v6 t-bird. It was My first car. Bought it for $2200 and drove it for 10 years. Best car I ever owned, unless it snowed. Absolutely quick and fast for its size. I miss that car.
I used to have an 88 5.0 Cougar and I loved it! I would love this even more (especially the way it's set up)!
I'm a simple fucker, I see fox body I upvote
Luv this T Bird just the way it is looks so Amazing with the 93 Cobra rims witch are my favorite rims of all time I'm a Mustang guy had about 9 different Mustangs but this Car is sweet I've been trying to find one for a few years now but no luck ? I did spot one same color but it was totalled and in a salvage yard mostly all the good parts were gone already🐺
Remember being 16, and the sportiest can your parents would let you get was like a Bonneville SSEI or a turbo coupe?
Ahh the mid 2000's
I had a brand new one in 1988! Black with black and grey leather interior, 5 speed, premium sound, keyless entry, it had everything but the moon roof! Hands down my favorite car that ever had!
I almost bought one of these back in 1988. The only Thunderbird that actually looked like a bird!
Those Cobra wheels look great on the Turbo Coupe!!!!
Ugly? The TC and SC were badass
Thing still looks good
My mom had this car and I loved it back in 90s growing up
Had a 88 Merkur XR4Tj with the 88 Tbird 2.3 turbo engine and transmission. On nitrous it ran 10's on the 1/4 mile. Man I miss that car.
I knew I recognized some of these roads shown throughout the review. Then I spotted the sign for Crystal Cave at the end -- Berks County locale confirmed!
Same Thunderbird that was on ThatDudeinBlue?
+Kenny Lopez No.
Yes indeed.
Yes same car
Yes.
+StreetSweepa RS lol
I had a summer job as a lot boy for my local Ford dealer in Philly in 88. Someone stole our T-bird turbo and it was recovered in Baltimore. I was sent to get it and spent the whole day weaving up and down i95. Loved it!
The greatest era of tbird imo. Love those things.
What the fuck. He says, "Go find one" right as I'm opening craigslist to wade through the shit in hopes there's one on there.
they all sold fifteen minutes after this video went live
There's 3 right near me lol. All 5 speeds